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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Entertainment
Victoria Johns

Strictly winner Kara Tointon reveals sad truth behind show's Glitterball trophy

Strictly Come Dancing winner Kara Tointon has told fans the show's Glitterball trophy is made of cardboard.

The sought-after prize is given to the series' winner after months of impressive performances.

However, EastEnders star Kara, 39, who won the show in 2010 with Artem Chigvintsev, reckons her trophy is falling apart.

Speaking on the Celebrity Catch Up: Life After That Thing I Did podcast, she said: “It’s now bald. It’s a bloomin’ bald, grey cardboard ball.

“I feel like saying to the BBC, ‘I need some maintenance on this please! If you can get round here and shimmy it on together again’.

“It should come with a lifetime guarantee.”

Kara described Strictly as “dancing army camp” and one of the “most nerve-wracking” things she’d ever done.

“I still cannot believe that I won the show,” she admitted. “It’s my victory in life and I take it with both hands.

Kara Tointon told fans the Strictly Glitterball trophy is made from cardboard (PA)

“You’re doing something that is completely out of your comfort zone in every sense, but a really one-off life experience that I look back at so fondly,” she said.

The mum-of-two wowed judges with her athletic performances in which she proved herself as a professional dancer.

However, Kara recalls her show finale as as a "car crash" after she suffered a painful injury just hours before her performance.

The talented actress lifted the Glitterball trophy with her then beau Artem, but said there was more to the final than viewers saw at home.

The actress won the show with Artem in 2010 (PA)
She danced through the final with a torn ligament in her arm (PA)

Kara was forced to dance through the second half of the final with a torn ligament in her arm.

In a case of no pain, no gain, the star managed to do her best to ignore the pain as the couple pulled off a stunning Waltz and American Smooth.

But despite winning the entire series, Kara said the finale was bittersweet.

Speaking exclusively to Mirror Online, the Mr Selfridge star confessed: "I always get a little bit upset about my final.

Kara admits she was upset she was injured during the show finale (Getty Images)
The actress has starred in shows including EastEnders and Mr Selfridge (Getty Images)

"You are meant to get better every week, but I had quite a bad injury in the final the day before, I pulled some ligaments in my arm.

"On the day of the final, I was in quite a lot of pain. So my final dance was a bit of a car crash. It was just awful because I couldn't really move."

Kara started dating Russian hunk Artem after meeting on the show but the pair split in 2014.

Kara shares two sons with Marius (Karwai Tang)

The actress then met Norwegian chiropractor Marius Jensen with whom she has two sons, Frey, three, and Helly, 10 months.

Sadly, the parents are reported to have split 10 months ago.

Despite reports of infidelity, a source said: "There was no wrong-doing on either side, and they both still care about each other."

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